The present invention is directed generally to an improved method of carrying herbicides and more particularly to an apparatus and method of carrying herbicides to flora growing in or around sewer lines.
Sewer lines are prone to developing leaks. This is especially true of lines running from buildings adjacent to high traffic roadways, and in areas where earthquakes are common.
The openings that develop are often penetrated by roots. In time these roots can clog or rupture a sewer line. Once a clog or rupture occurs the sewer line must be removed and replaced. This replacement procedure is expensive and typically results in the loss of surrounding flora.
In order to prevent flora damage to sewer lines various herbicides have been used. The most common of these has been copper(II) sulfate. The prior art teaches flushing copper(II) sulfate down a toilet upstream from sewer lines where vegetation may potentially enter and damage a line.
The phytocidal effect of copper(II) sulfate is known to deter the growth of roots. However, the herbicidal application techniques known to the art are haphazard and expensive. For example, there is no practical method of determining how much, if any, of the herbicide has reached potentially damaging root growths. Herbicide applications are expensive, and over application may lead to the death of the flora.
Additionally, water is a poor carrying agent in sewer lines since it will not allow the entire line to be flushed with a herbicide, clearing only a free path along the normal fluid flow line.
In large industrial and/or urban sewer systems, it has been known to introduce a detergent and air from a hose connected to a high pressure air source so as to produce a herbicidal carrying agent. While such a procedure allows for the clearance of flora from areas above the normal flow line, this method is poorly suited for residential application. Where access to to the sewer line is through a toilet fixture, dragging air lines or a compressor into a home is inconvenient at best. More importantly, it is difficult if not impossible to cause foam generated in a toilet to be flushed down a sewer rather than overflow onto a bathroom floor.
Accordingly, a principal object of the present invention is to provide an improved method and apparatus for inhibiting the growth of flora in sewer lines.
Another object of the invention is to provide an economical method and apparatus for inhibiting the growth of flora in sewer lines.
Another object of the invention is to provide an easy to use method and apparatus for inhibiting the growth of flora in sewer lines.
Still another object of the invention is to provide a method and apparatus for inhibiting the growth of flora in sewer lines that will not unnecessarily damage the flora.
Still another object of the invention is to provide a method and apparatus for inhibiting the growth of flora in sewer lines that does not damage sewer lines.
Yet another object of the invention is to provide a method and apparatus for inhibiting the growth of flora in sewer lines that does not damage the environment.
Yet another object of the invention is to provide a method and apparatus for inhibiting the growth of flora in sewer lines that coats the entire cross-sectional area of the line.